Venetian blind slat tilting mechanism



Oct. 18, 1949. J BURNS VENETIAN BLIND SLAT TILTING MECHANISM 2 Shee ts-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 8, 1948 INVENTOR. fi'e/fiurwa.

A TTORNEY Oct. 18, 1949. I l BURNS 2,484,804

VENETIAN BLIND SLAT TILTING MECHANISM Filed Oct. 8, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

. Z ed 50 21/? a.

A TTORNE Y Patented Oct. 18, 1949 VENETIAN BLIND SLAT TILTING MECHANISM Fred J. Burns, Saginaw, Mich., assignor to The Columbia Mills, I nc., New York, N. Y.

Application October 8, 1948, Serial No. 53,471

6 Claims.

This invention relates to readily'adjustable slat tilting mechanism for Venetian blinds such as used in window openings of various widths and lengths, for controlling light and air currents admitted through said slats.

One of the prime objects of the invention is to design a very simple, practical, and economical tilting mechanism, which maintains the ladder tape spaced apart and by means of which the blind slats can be tilted to any desired angle of inclination.

Another object is to design a tilting means readily mountable and conceala'ble in the headbox of the blind, and which is readily operable, either manually of mechanically, to tilt the slats to desired position.

A further object is to design a tilt mechanism which can be formed of stampings to facilitate mass production, which is composed of few parts, all of which can be economically manufactured and assembled.

A further object still is to design a tilt mechanism which is easy to operate and move to extreme closed position to eliminate light cracks or rays therethrough and which maintains the ladder tape in proper spaced-apart relation in open, partially closed, or extreme closed position.

With the above and other objects in view, the present invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter more fully dea scribed, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes may be made in the form, size, proportion, and minor details of construction, without departing from the spirit, or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front-elevational view of a Venetian blind, the headbox being broken away to show the tilting means.

Fig. 2 is a transverse-sectional view through the headbox, taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, illustrating the tilting movement.

Fig. 4 is an isometric view showing the tape uide and cord pulley mounting.

Fig. 5 is an isometric view of the tilt bracket.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings in which I have shown the preferred embodiment of my invention, the letter H indicates the headbox of a Venetian blind, which comprises front, back and bottom walls 8, 9, and it] respectively.

Spaced-apart brackets ll span the headbox,

and a. tilt shaft I2 is journaled in said brackets, a transversely extending shaft [3 being mounted in the one end of the box and includes a cord sheave I4 over which the tilt cord I5 is trained, this tilting mechanism being of conventional design and is well-known in the industry, and I do not deem it necessary to show or describe this in detail, as it forms no part of the present invention.

Rocker elements R are mounted on the tilt shaft I 2 in longitudinal, spaced-apart relation, and is made up in three parts as shown, the main bracket 15 being spaced above the shaft I2 and having an elongated, slotted opening I! therein, the edges of which are serrated as at [8, the end walls or legs 19 being bent at right angles, and rectangular-shaped openings 2!] are provided in said end walls to accommodate the tilt shaft l2 therein.

Diametrically space-d openings 2| are provided in the end walls I9, and opposed curved or crowned wing members W are mounted on said bracket, the upper end of each wing being formed with projecting pintles 22 adapted to be mounted in the openings 2!, each wing being shouldered as at 23 to iit between the end walls of the tilt bracket, and the main section 24 is of sufficient width to span the space between the end walls and ride thereon when the bracket is in upright position.

The lower edge 25 is shouldered as at 26 and is turned outwardly as shown, so that it readily clears the walls of the pulley bracket P, and when the blind is tilted to position as clearly shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, the depending wing swings free and forms a smooth guide for the ladder tape 21, while the opposite wing member rides on the end walls and maintains the opposite tape 28 in properly spaced relation.

A cord pulley mounting and tape guide bracket P is mounted in the bottom wall ill of the headbox directly below the tilt bracket, and is formed with notched ends 30 which are engaged by tabs 3| punched from this bottom wall to hold it in position.

Upwardly turned legs 32 are punched from the pulley bracket 29 and a pin 33 spans said legs and on which the pulley 34 is revolvably mounted and over which the lift cords 35 are trained. The side walls 36 are also turned at right angles to the main body of the pulley mounting, the upper free end sections being bent inwardly as at 31, this wall forming a smooth bearing surface over which the tilt tape slides, and openings 38 are provided in the bottom wall of the headbox in alignment with the side walls 36 to accommodate the upper end sections of the ladder tape.

The blind includes a bottom rail 39 to which lift cords 35 are anchored, and the ladder tapes 21 and 28 are also connected to this bottom rail, and include cross tapes (not shown) in which the slat members S are mounted as usual, the lift cords leading upwardly through these slats, thence through the suitable openings (not shown) in the bottom wall of the headbox, thence over the pulleys 34, and thence leading to a conventional cord lock L as usual.

The ladder tapes lead upwardly through the openings 38 provided in the bottom of the headbox, the ends being inserted in the opening l1, and a clip 40 is then inserted to hold them in adjusted position.

When the mechanism is in position shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 5 of the drawings, the slats are in open position, the wings W riding on the edges of the end walls I 9, but when the cord 15 is actuated to tilt the mechanism to position indicated in Fig. 3 of the drawings, the one wing swings free and against the side walls 36 of the tape guide, so that the tape rides on the curved face of the Wing and is properly spaced, the opposite wing rides on the end walls of the bracket, thus spacing the opposite tape and preventing any binding or wedging thereof, this tilting action tilting the slats and bottom rail accordingly.

From the foregoing description, it will be clearly obvious that I have perfected a very simple, practical, and economical slat tilting mechanism for Venetian blinds and the like.

What I claim is:

1. A Venetian blind comprising a headbox, a tilt shaft mounted thereon, rocker elements in axially spaced relation on said tilt shaft, each rocker element comprising a ladder tape attachment bracket spaced above said shaft with its longitudinal axis parallel to the shaft axis, end walls formed integral with the rocker element, bowed wing members hingedly connected to and spanning the end walls of the bracket, and a pulley bracket and tape guide mounted in the actuated.

3. The combination defined in claim 1 in which 'the end walls of the rocker element are provided with openings therein, and pintles provided on the upper end of the bowed wings for loose, hinged engagement in said openings.

4. The combination as defined in claim 1 in which the width of the upper edges of the wing elements are reduced to accommodate said edge between the end walls of the rocker element with the extreme end downwardly turned and having outwardly projecting pintles formed on the edges of the turned ends.

5. A Venetian blind comprising a headbox, a tilt shaft mounted therein, rocker elements mounted on said shaft in axially spaced relation, each rocker element including a ladder type attachment spaced radially from said shaft, opposed bowed wings hingedly mounted on each rocker element and over which the ladder tape is trained, and a pulley bracket and tape guide mounted in said headbox directly below said rocker element and provided with upstanding legs for spacing said ladder tape as the rocker elements are actuated.

6. The combination as defined in claim 5 in which tape openings are provided in the bottom wall of the headbox in alignment with the rocker elements and legs of the pulley bracket, and inwardly turned'edges on the upper ends of the legs to form a rounded surface over which the tape slides.

FRED J. BURNS.

N 0 references cited. 

